1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the field of training devices, and more specifically, to the field of marksmanship training for weapons having an aim-point sight, such as rifles and handguns. In particular, the invention is a simulator in which the trainee acquires and/or perfects his marksmanship skills without the expenditure of live ammunition and the risk of injury to himself and others that is inherent on the traditional rifle range.
2. Description of the Prior Art
People have historically learned to shoot on outdoor ranges, the locations of which were selected for their remoteness in order to promote safety. The trainees lined-up on one side, on the other side the targets were placed against a protective backdrop such as a sand hill. The area beyond the targets was restricted for great distances due to the long range of the weapons, which resulted in a large amount of land being required for each range. In addition, rigid discipline was practiced along the firing line to prevent accidents.
Now, simulators are used in lieu of live ammunition, with the result that the injury that could have resulted from a trainee's negligence virtually has been eliminated. However, simulators that have been available do not accurately duplicate the complete training experience that one receives by shooting live rounds in the operational weapon. Most simulators are quite elaborate and complicated, and are expensive to acquire and operate.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,336,018 issued to some of the present inventors and others, discloses an electro-optic infantry weapons training system for simulating the firing of a quintet of weapons at a visual target which appears on a screen. A quintet of trainee riflemen, each of whom is holding a weapon, aim and fire the weapons at the visual target. A visual projector projects upon the screen a background scene including the visual target, while an infrared projector simultaneously projects an infrared target on the screen. Each weapon includes a sensor element for sensing the infrared target whenever the weapon is correctly aimed at the visual target. The sensor elements are connected in a combination with sensor circuits, enable circuits, and an interface circuit so as to provide to a microprocessor computer and an eight-bit microcomputer data words which indicate whether each of the quintet of trainee riflemen have scored a hit upon the visual target. The microprocessor computer then supplies a message to a voice unit so as to indicate through headphones to an instructor and each of the quintet of trainee riflemen whether the trainee rifleman has scored a hit upon the visual target. The eight-bit microcomputer supplies to a data CRT display a message so as to indicate to the instructor whether each of the five trainee riflemen have scored a hit upon the visual target. At the conclusion of a training session, the microprocessor computer will supply to a data terminal the results of the training session in accordance with a message format. A recoil simulator is shown by the patent, as is a gun soundburst synthesizer in conjunction with the headset.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,340,370 issued to some of the present inventors and others, discloses a linear motion and pop-up target training system for training a marksmanship to fire a simulated weapon. Located on a terrain surface of a modelboard are six pop-up targets and three bi-directional linear motion targets, each of which emits a pulsed beam of infrared light when activated by a first microprocessor computer. Mounted on the weapon is a sensor which will sense the pulsed beam of infrared light emitted by the activated target. The sensor then supplies to a rifle electronics circuit, an analog signal proportional to the amount of light received by the sensor. The rifle electronics circuit converts the analog signal to a digital logic signal to be supplied to a second microprocessor computer. The second microprocessor computer then processes the digital logic signal in accordance with a predetermined computer program so as to determine whether the marksman has scored a hit, a miss, or a near miss upon the activated target. A voice unit and bang circuit are included in conjunction with a headset for the trainee.
Statutory invention registration H186 issued to some of the present inventors and others, discloses a recoil simulator that electro-mechanically applies an adjustable impulse force through a flexible cable attached to the butt of a weapon simulator when the firing trigger of the weapon simulator is actuated by the trainee.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,583,950 discloses a light pen for use with a dummy weapon and a target image displayed on a television monitor. The light pen is adapted to include a converging lens system in order to enhance the definition of the group of phosphor dots to which the pen is responding, at distances from four feet to twenty feet from the monitor. The trigger of the dummy weapon is manipulated by the trainee when he perceives the correct orientation between the dummy weapon and the microcomputer/videodisc-player generated target. Trajectory is purportedly calculated by the computer in order to generate and display the impact point. To complete the disclosure, reliance is placed on the statement that an Apple Language Card with Pascal language software, is suitable for enabling appropriate images to appear on the screen and for executing the necessary trajectory and shot impact response calculation.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,395,045 discloses a marksmanship trainer and game employing a simulated rifle that cooperates wirelessly with a television receiver on which is displayed the intended target. Manipulation of the trigger on the rifle causes a photo diode to emit infrared radiation that is received by a special box attached to the TV that, in turn, flashes the screen white in order to provide enough illumination to be sensed by a photodetector on the rifle. The resultant signal generated at the rifle again triggers the infrared emitter which this time is received by the special box for calculating the numerical horizontal position at which the rifle was pointing, and counting the vertical lines to which the scan had traced when the trigger was manipulated. The signal generated by the photodetector on the rifle in response to the bright screen is a series of pulses corresponding to the several raster scan-line portions that are simultaneously within its field of view. The leading edge of the pulses denotes the placement of the portions as they appear horizontally on the screen, which is measured by counting in one-half microsecond intervals from the immediately preceding horizontal sync to the leading edge of the pulse. Vertical placement is measured by counting the number of lines that have been scanned horizontally from vertical sync to the leading edge of the first pulse. Accuracy is purported to be within 1% to 2%.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,457,715 discloses a pressure sensor that is shown as a modification to a rifle in order to adapt the rifle for training. The sensor includes a transducer having a foam core made from carbon impregnated polystyrene that changes electrical resistance when subjected to pressure. When the carbon particles in the foam core are compacted by added pressure, the transducer's current flow or voltage drop responds in relationship to the amount of pressure that is applied.
The above-described disclosures are representative of the state-of-the-art that was available in marksmanship training systems and components before the present invention. Alone and when taken together they have deficiencies and disadvantages that limit their effectiveness for training. Accordingly, a purpose of the present invention is to improve the state of marksmanship trainers by providing a system that addresses all characteristics of the expert marksman, monitors the trainee's performance in each aspect of proper technique and practices, and provides enhanced realism to the training session and a complete review of the trainee's performance along with specific guidance available aurally and/or visually from a library prepared to correct all errors in performance that deviate from the techniques practiced by an expert marksman.